


After Effects

by intheheart



Series: Awake [5]
Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-03
Updated: 2015-05-03
Packaged: 2018-03-28 21:02:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3869686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/intheheart/pseuds/intheheart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After celebrating at the tavern with Iron Bull, Lavellan wakes in her bed with her first hangover. Solas is there, amused by her situation, but helpful too.</p>
            </blockquote>





	After Effects

She slammed her eyes as quickly as she could, the sting burning and shooting through her head, which throbbed along with her heart that morning. “Unghhh,” was the only sound she could make. Nirwen's body felt heavy, and she pulled her blanket back up to her face, gathering it as a shield against the abundant sun.

“Sleep well?” came a voice sitting nearby with an undisguised chuckle. It reverberated within her head, making her irritable. Sleep. More sleep would be good, if she could shake this all over cloudy feeling.

 _Solas._ Wait, what? Why was he in here? How did she get here? It hurt to think, swallow, even move.

“Whahappen?” she muttered, mouth thick and words rushing together. Her eyes remained firmly shut, arm rolled in blanket and in front of her eyes.

He laughed again. This time unmistakable. “What do you last remember?” He asked. The room grew dimmer as he quietly moved about.

Nirwen searched her mind, thoughts as slow as her words, strong thirst bubbling up from within her, but her limbs still felt heavy.

“Bull...we....talked. Celebrated.” A coolness settling in the room made her venture opening her eyes to slits. It still hurt, but it felt less like someone had taken her daggers and run her head through via her eyes. “...At the tavern.” The memory of the previous night's celebration came back, fuzzy at its edges. She remembered having a few drinks with Bull, making crude declarations to mark their dragonslaying, but everything beyond that was completely gone. Yet she was here, in her bed, and feeling, presumably, as one trampled by a herd of halla might.

Solas' voice was low. He came and sat beside her, offering a cup of water. She drank, then closed her eyes as he moved to massage her temples.

“Bull said you two had a wonderful celebration. Yet, sometime following your last drink, he mentioned you started forgetting how to stand up on your own.” He didn't laugh out loud that time, though she heard it in his voice. The relief she felt from his touch was enough to temporarily push away her embarrassed irritation.

“How did I get here?” she asked as his hands moved down to her neck, the pressure soothing, even while everything still hurt. She remembered a third or fourth? round last night, but little after that. Heavy and sweet, the liquor burned unlike anything she was used to, but other than a little warmth, she recalled being all right.

“Bull carried you up. You were never going to make those stairs on your own. I remained, made certain you slept before slipping into the Fade. First time?” There was no teasing in his question, but something kinder.

“Yes. I grew up as a supplier, a protector. I'm supposed to keep my mind focused. We'd have wines, but this is quite....new. I didn't know focusing could hurt,” she laughed now, in spite of the pain she new would come.

This time, he did laugh, one of those ending in the lightest of snorts. So dignified and careful was Solas, knowledgeable, and helpful, but what was in that laugh, she grasped at softly, as a hand reaching for a butterfly; it was relaxed, a look inside.

Face in hands, she spoke again. “They will talk. Do you know of any spells that would let me walk around unnoticed, perhaps?” Sitting there, laughing together, she felt calm. “I do have to meet a duke with Josephine later, but I think I can take a bit more time up here before facing the loose tongues.”

“Lay back and close your eyes,” he said, moving her arms out on either side of her body. “I will show you something that will help. Imagine your body is a triangle. Your head at the top, your arms the sides. Breathe slowly, and in your mind, see the pain in your head, see it flowing through you, spreading outward, down, until you feel some relief. The burden is easier when it is shared.”

Nirwen was no stranger to meditations, but this was new, and surprisingly effective. She still hurt, but she did feel better able to handle these after effects. She breathed slowly, feeling herself drift again, until stirred by the warmth of Solas' mouth on her own.

After a few more kisses, she opened her eyes and looked into his.

“Was that medicinal? Or just a side benefit?”

 

**Author's Note:**

> The triangle visualization is an actual biofeedback trick I learned as a kid and have used often for my migraines. It really can help.


End file.
